Ryanair is cutting its presence at Vienna International Airport, withdrawing 10 routes and reducing the number of aircraft based in the Austrian capital. The airline has blamed the Austrian government for what it describes as excessive costs that are making the country less competitive.
Ryanair will operate 12 aircraft from Vienna during the coming winter season, down from 14 in the summer and 16 last winter. The latest cuts are expected to affect around 80 jobs. Eight of the cancelled routes compete directly with Austrian Airlines (AUA), the Lufthansa subsidiary, reported by the Kurier.
The cancelled Vienna routes include flights to Copenhagen, Marseille, Tel Aviv, Dubrovnik, Niš, Salerno, Seville, Warsaw, Lanzarote and Riga. Ryanair is also ending its London services from Linz and Klagenfurt.
Andreas Gruber, Ryanair’s manager for Austria, said the airline was responding to the high cost of operating in the country. Ryanair has criticised Austria’s €12 aviation tax per ticket, arguing that the government has failed to remove it. The airline also says air-traffic-control charges have risen by 60 percent since the pandemic, while Vienna Airport fees have increased by 30 percent.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary sharply criticised Chancellor Christian Stocker, accusing the government of failing to act. He said a €30 million support package for the aviation industry announced in June was not enough and urged the government to abandon it in favour of scrapping the passenger tax.
Without such changes, O’Leary warned, Austria could continue losing aircraft, routes and future growth to cheaper neighbouring European Union countries.
Ryanair’s retreat marks another turn in a long and difficult battle for passengers in Vienna. Since autumn 2025, the airline has withdrawn five Boeing aircraft from the airport, although it has continued operating 14 Airbus A320s through its Lauda Europe subsidiary.
Ryanair and Wizz Air expanded strongly in Vienna after the collapse of Niki in 2017, seeking to fill the gap left by the former low-cost carrier. Ryanair later took over Niki founder Niki Lauda’s successor airline, Laudamotion.
Their arrival triggered an intense battle for market share and brought unusually cheap fares to passengers for a time. But that price war has faded. Wizz Air withdrew from Vienna altogether last year, and Ryanair is now also reducing its footprint.
For Vienna Airport, the latest cuts represent another challenge as the city seeks to remain a competitive European aviation hub.
